Issues with back pain typically fall into two categories: those characteristic
of age and those triggered by the way you use (or abuse) your body. According to the
National Institutes of Health, 8 out of 10 people will experience back pain in their
lifetime, for varying reasons.

Here are the most common back problems at each stage of life, and what you can
do to lower your risk.

Kids and Teens

Children and teens put their backs through the ringer, whether snowboarding, cheerleading
or wrestling with friends. Though young people have limber bodies that help them bounce
back from injury, back pain among children and adolescents is fairly prevalent. Causes
can range from a simple muscle strain to more serious and long-term factors.

George Picetti, M.D., a pediatric spine surgeon with Sutter Medical Foundation,
says doctors are seeing an increase in childhood back pain related to weight.
“Extra weight puts stress on the immature spine, throwing off posture and causing
the lower back to work harder to stay upright,” he says. “This can lead
to lower back pain and even conditions like spinal deformities, arthritis and fractures.”

Dr. Picetti also sees some cases of spine fractures (spondylolysis)
in kids who play sports that involve repetitive hyperextension of the spine or impact.
Another 2 to 4 percent of children and adolescents between ages 10 and 16 develop
adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, a side-to-side curvature of the spine that can cause
back pain.

Most cases of back pain in children and adolescents will heal with standard treatment
at home,
in some cases combined with exercise and bracing.

If pain persists for several weeks, interferes with daily activities or is accompanied
by other symptoms such as fever, night-time pain, or radiating pain and numbness in
the extremities, see your doctor for a thorough evaluation.

What to Change: Activity is great for kids, but keep tabs on sports to
make sure your child uses proper equipment and form. If your child or your family
has a predisposition to back pain, Dr. Picetti recommends your child avoid sports
that require a high level of flexion, extension and rotation (gymnastics, dance and
soccer) or considerably high impact (football). Finally, keep your child’s weight
in check by staying active as a family and stocking your kitchen with high-nutrition,
low-calorie foods.

Young Adults

Palo Alto Medical Foundation internal medicine doctor Kim Carlson, M.D., says many
of her young adult patients in Silicon Valley spend the majority of their days sitting
in front of computers. Not surprisingly, this age group regularly complains of back
pain.

“Poor posture and sitting for long hours strains the spine and the muscles
attached to the back, causing lower back pain,” Dr. Carlson says. “Also,
using laptops and tablets, there’s just not enough space between the keyboard
and the screen. Many people sit hunched over, typing on gadgets in their laps. This
can lead to upper back pain.”

What to Change: Work on posture, especially when using the computer.
Keep your elbows at right angles to your waist and the monitor at approximately eye
level. This keeps a supportive posture and prevents the hunching of the shoulders
or back.

Also, set an hourly reminder on your phone to prompt you to get up, stretch, stand
and move around. This will expand the space between vertebrae and allow discs to better
absorb nutrients.

Middle-Age Adults

As you age, your susceptibility increases for disc-related back pain.

“That’s most likely due to the drying out of the spinal discs, which
are supposed to be soft and squishy,” Dr. Carlson says. When a disc dries out,
it doesn’t absorb shock as well. And if your posture is bad or you overexert
your back, the disc can get pushed outward, causing pain.

What to Change: One way to prevent disc deterioration is to increase exercise.
Movement increases blood circulation, carrying vital nutrients to the spinal discs.
The weekend warrior routine – sitting around all week and then playing sports
on the weekend – can backfire once you reach middle age and your body loses
flexibility, leading to injury. Instead, spread your activity throughout the week
and remember to stretch adequately before any high-impact sports.

Smoking can double or triple your likelihood of back problems. That’s because
the nicotine in cigarettes constricts blood vessels and decreases circulation to the
spine. Look into a smoking cessation program that provides the tools, medications
(if necessary) and support you need. Sutter care centers offer a number of resources
to help, including classes at several of our facilities and a smoking cessation program
at our Sutter
Express Care clinics (located inside some Rite Aid stores).

Seniors

Just when retirement arrives and you have time to play golf or dig into gardening,
your back may refuse to cooperate. Your aching back at this age likely comes from
problems such as arthritis, which breaks down the cushioning cartilage and discs in
the spine, or osteoporosis, which weakens the bones and can lead to compression fractures
in the vertebrae.

As we age, we lose flexibility of the spine as well as bone mass, Dr. Carlson says.
“We just don’t squat or bend as much as humans have, historically. So
our backs get stiff, and then when we do bend or squat, we don’t have the flexibility
and we strain our backs.”

What to change: Look for low-impact exercise that gets your heart rate
going, and incorporates stretching to keep you limber, weight-bearing activity to
build bone mass, and core work to strengthen the muscles in your abdomen and lower
back that protect and support your spine. You may need to vary your activities to
hit all these targets (and to keep from getting bored), but some options include walking,
water aerobics, recumbent cycling, yoga and Pilates.

Making good lifestyle choices can slow or prevent age-related decline. No matter
what your age, know the risks and pursue changes today that will keep your back in
tip-top shape for decades to come.